Why I-O Journals Do Not Publish Qualitative Work

Pratt and Bonaccio (2016) ask why there is very little qualitative research published in “top [industrial–organizational] I-O” journals, such as the Journal of Applied Psychology (JAP), Personnel Psychology (PP), or Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes (OBHDP). They propose better training, placing skilled qualitative researchers on editorial boards, and “dispelling” myths related to qualitative research as a way to begin changing this situation. Even if these I-O journals explicitly invite qualitative work for its own sake, I do not think the steps Pratt and Bonaccio propose will have the intended effect, however valuable they may be in other respects.